Tear gas bullet



M. E. BARKER TEARAGAS BULLET Jan. 12, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 12, 1942 in U5 1] [51" Ma uriL'EE' Bar/ 51" i; llf i M. E. BARKER TEAR GAS BULLET Jan. 12, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 12, 1942.

Ma (12755 EBHFKEF owe/2W M Hzfurn E y TEAR GAS BULLET Maurice E. Barker, Washington, D.C., assignor to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of War as trustee Application February 12, 1942, Serial No. 430,610

3 Claims. (Cl. 102-66) (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952), sec. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates, in general, to means and method for projecting and dispersing an incapacitating gas.

More particularly, it is an object of this invention to improve upon such methods and devices as now known or used fordispersing toxic and irritant substances.

Notably among the various instmmentalities now known or employed for carrying incapacitating gases to a substantially remote point in relation to the locale of supply are projectiles in the form of bullets so equipped that upon impact the cartridge or shell explodes thus releasing the incapacitating gas-contents thereof.

Various types of projectiles for the purpose stated in the preceding paragraph have been proposed but all of them have been found objectionable for any one or more of a variety of reasons. In general complexity of construction and assembly, multiplicity of parts, limited dispersibility, and concentration of the gases disproportioned to the volume content of the projectile are some of the factors that militate against the prior gas dispersing projectiles.

It is, therefore, the broad aim of this invention to provide a gas dispersing projectile that in general is an improvement over, and is free of those objections noted in the preceding paragraph against the various types of such projectiles heretofore available.

The specific objects of the invention, and the several features thereof combining to present a projectile of the type indicated and capable of attaining such objects, will he better understood and appreciated from a study of the following description made in connection with the accompauying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view, illustrating one embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 and illustrates an alternate embodiment of the invention.

In practice the invention essentially embodies a bullet, the shell of which, according to the invention, has the wall thereof from the nose to a point inwardly from the open rear end relatively thin as at 4, and at the rear end relatively thick as at 6, see Figures 1 and 2.

The thin walled portion 4 of the shell forms a chamber for the disabling gas 12 that is to be dispersed. The charge 12 may, and preferably is, a lachrymatory or tear gas, although a sternutatory or sneezing gas, or other vesicants may constitute the charge, and as may be dictated by the intended purpose.

An annular internal flange or seat 8 is provided at the juncture of the wall portions 4 and 6, and cooperates with a removable closure or plug 18 for the rear end of the shell in retaining in position within the shell a container 14 of puncturable or rupturable material and within which is sealed a bursting charge 16. A suggested explosive or bursting charge 16 is pentaerythrite tetranitrate.

2,920,566 1C .Patented Jan. 12, 1

The thicknessof the shell wall 4 is such that upon impact with a building or other obstruction the shell will not break prior to explosion of the charge 16; while the thickness of the shell wall 6 is such that it will only fragmentize upon explosionof the charge 16 and the part 4 of the shell will then break up, the charge 12 receiving the full force of the explosion. As a result the bullet will, for example, penetrate the wall of an enclosure or building and the tear gas or other charge 12 will be forced forward, or substantially in the direction of flight of the projectile, into the enclosure.

In the embodiment of Figure 1 the firing pin 22 is disposed axially of the shell and extends inwardly from nose 10 to terminate just short of the container 14 as shown. The thickness of the shell wall 4 in this embodiment of the invention is such as will permit the nose to collapse upon impact and cause operation of the firing pin 22, the latter being anchored in position through the medium of a lead mass 28 which will not interfere with the collapsing of the nose as and for the purpose indicated.

In this embodiment of theinvention the plug 18 is in the form of a metallic disc of material thickness, and is secured in position in any suitable manner, preferably as by being screw threaded into the open rear end of the shell as indicated at 20.

When the bullet of Figure 1 is fired no action takes place until the shell strikes and penetrates the target, as for example the wall of an enclosure or the like, when the nose 10 of the shell is crushed in or collapsed slightly without breaking. Under such circumstances the firing pin 22 pierces the wall of container 14 causing the charge 16 to explode. Upon explosion of the shell the wall section 4 thereof will fragmentize and the contents 12 forcibly expelled to enter the enclosure and spread over a radius and with an effectiveness not heretofore possible with available prior gas dispersing projectiles.

In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2 the firing pin, therein indicated by the reference numeral 46 is carried by a disc 44 and yieldably held out of efiective contact with the container 14 by a suitable spring or analogous resilient device 48.

Disc 44 and spring 48 are housed within a hollow, cylindrical insert 50 that is threaded into a central opening, as indicated at 40, provided therefor in the plug 18.

The inner end of insert 50 is open to permit an end of spring 48 to impinge upon an adjacent wall of container 14 as shown, while the outer end wall of the insert is of sufiicient thickness and strength to absorb the impinging action of the propelling charge thereagainst without such adverse action on the firing pin as might result in the exploding of the shell while the latter is in the gun.

When the bullet according to the modification just described is fired and strikes and/or penetrates the target the plate 44 together with the firing pin 46 carried thereby moves forward under the influence of inertia. Under such circumstances the pin 46, against the action of spring 48, forcibly pierces the wall of container 14 caus ing the shell to explode, resulting in a concentrated dispersion of the irritant 12.

It will be appreciated that the shell may be made of any suitable caliber, and may be, within reason, made to meet the requirements of any type of gun from which shells of this general character may be fired with advantage; and, further, that the disabling agent 12 may be in either liquid or solid form. In the preferred embodiment of this invention it was found that the thickness of wall 6 is about double as compared with the thickness of wall shown at 4 in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2.

It is believed that the foregoing sets forth the invention in such detail as will enable others to fully appreci- 2,920,566 K a H in the advantages of the projectile over those of a gas dispersing character now available, and to adapt it to various applications within the meaning and range of equivalency of the following claims, the precise details of eonstructionherein' set forthv being by way of illustration and not. by way of restriction. j What is elairned as new is:

1. A gas dispersing projectile comprising a shell having a threaded opening at its rear end and provided in wardly from said end with an internal annular flange, and the Wall of the .shell from the region of the flange to the. nose'of the shell being thin, and from the region of the flange to the said rear end being thick, a puncturable Gontainer having a filling of explosive material therein positioned .in the rear end of the shell and seating on said flange, a plug closingthe rear end of the shell, a firing pinloeatcd within the shell in operative position to the container, and an incapacitating-fgas material confined within the shell between the flange and nose thereof.

2. A gas dispersing projectile comprising a shell open at its, rear end' and provided'inwardly from said end with an internal flange, a plug closing the rear' end of the shell, a container, having therein a filling of explosive material, confined between said flange and plug, a firing pin extending axially from the nose of the shell and terminating short of the container for puncturing the latter upon collapse of the nose on impact of the shell with an obstruction, and a dispersible incapacitating-gas material within the shell.

3. A gas dispersing projectile comprising a shell open at its rear end and provided inwardly from said end with an internal annular flange, a plug closing the rear end of the shell, a container, having a filling of explosive material therein, confined between the flange and plug, a dispersible incapacitating-gas material within the shell, and said plug having a hollow in the centre portion thereof opening into the shell, a firing pin located within said hollow, and a spring impinging at one end on the pin and at an opposite end against the container, and yieldably retaining the pin out of puncturing-contact with the container.

References Cited the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

